Jan Swanson

Thursday, May 26th, at 5:17 PM my Wife, Mother of my Son Ben, Partner, Love, and my Champion, peacefully passed away. This was after a relatively minor operation that went exceedingly well, on Tuesday, May24th. Within a few hours her blood pressure dropped and it all went downhill from there. In the next 48 hours she went from alert, conversing, to being ventilated and on dialysis. Only 60 hours after coming to the hospital she was in total shutdown. The Dr.’s (40+ over this time) all exclaimed ‘there is no reason for this to be happening”.

I made the decision with the Dr.’s to discontinue extreme measures. This was a desire expressed by Jan and I some time ago in our Advances Directives. Jan was only 60 years old. She was a Type 1 Diabetic for 53 Years! But she was her primary Dr.’s model patient. She took exceptional care of her health and diabetes. Her A1C tests (look that up) was always better than a non-diabetic patient.

She leveraged that healthy approach as she progressed through a high-risk pregnancy at age 35. The result was the birth of our healthy Miracle Baby, our Son Benjamin Alexander Swanson!

Jan and I worked together at a couple of locations and she was by far the best IT, Business Analyst I have worked with in my IT career (yes, there is a story there 😊). In her mid-40’s she decided IT was no longer her calling. She returned to school to get another degree and certification as a Registered Dietician. She finished at the top of her class (that Magna Cum Laud thing). She then went on to work to accumulate her 1,000 hours of training others to get her certification as Diabetes Educator! The Big Goal!

She has done that work for the past 13 years now. She was beloved by her colleagues, and patients alike. Always humorous, approachable and her patients appreciated she could relate to their struggle. And she knew her stuff. I used to say: with her long-term diabetes and education, her patients could not BS her in any way! For her, being an educator was her calling from God, her purpose. I know, a little dramatic but it fits her.

For all that, she will always be my Champion. She wanted to use her history and knowledge to help others live. Period. It’s what she did.

Sorry if this is too much information, but I have always been very proud of Jan. This has been a sudden and unexpected outcome and event.

Jan was preceded in death by her father, Ronald Lundquist and half-sister, Robin Pittman. She is survived by her husband, Ronald E. Swanson; son, Benjamin A. Swanson, mother, Bonnita Lundquist of Martinsville, PA; half-sister, Jill Maxwell (Gene); sisters, Stephanie Detwiller (Daryl) of Hopewell, PA, Lori Kinzer (Ken) of Colorado Springs, CO; stepson Michael E. Swanson of Greensboro, NC; grandchildren, Finnora Swanson and Cole Swanson, of Greensboro, NC, as well as many nieces, nephews, and great nieces and nephews.

Last, if you wish to show appreciation, please contribute at diabetes.org. Like Jan, they save lives.

Love You Jan - My Champion! Ron.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, June 25, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. at First Lutheran Church in Greensboro.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.haneslineberryfhnorthelm.com for the Swanson family.